Doming is the process of adding a three-dimensional surface, such as a glass-like plastic resin bubble, to a two-dimensional surface to create a three-dimensional product. Doming involves the dispensing of a liquid polyurethane resin onto a printed label or decal in a measured amount. The liquid resin then flows over the surface until its progress is interrupted, usually by the cut edge of the label or decal. Surface tension then holds the liquid in place, and it begins to cure after seven or eight minutes. Cured resin is dry to the touch after about one hour. These setting times assume a normal room temperature of approximately 70° F. (21° C.). The curing process can be accelerated by the application of heat. For example, placing trays of freshly domed labels into special cabinets heated to 90-100° F. (32-38° C.) reduces the cure time to approximately 20 minutes. Alternately, the domed designs or images can be cured inline by means of a conveyor equipped with an infrared heat source.
An appliqué is a decoration or ornament, such as needlework, including a swath of material, which is attached to the surface of another material. An appliqué is typically assembled by cutting a piece of a material and attaching it to the surface of another material. Appliqués are usually attached to the surface of a second material by sewing or by the application of pressure and heat through a heat sealing process. Appliqués may be assembled on most fabrics, and are largely associated with images and designs attached to garments and clothing.
There are other methods besides assembling of appliqués for providing clothing with graphics including, but not limited to, lettering, images, and designs. Sublimation, for example, is a method of applying an image to specially coated ceramics, metals, and polyester cloth. The sublimation process uses sublimation ink, heat, and pressure to bestow a substrate with an image. A heat-sensitive sublimation dye is dissolved in a liquid to print graphics and text and then transferred to special inkjet paper in a process called dye sub transfer. The dye sub transferred ink jet paper and an object with a sublimatable substrate are then placed into a heat press, where pressure and heat are applied to transfer the image to the substrate.
In sublimation, when the heating cycle is completed, the image on the paper has been transferred to the item and has actually become a part of the substrate or surface. Sublimation is typically performed on a polymer or polymer-coated item, such as polyester, as the pores of a polymer are more suitable for integrating the sublimation dye into its substrate. At high temperatures, the solid dyes in the print are converted into a gas without ever becoming a liquid. The high temperature also opens the pores of the polymer and allows the gas to enter them. When the item is removed from the heat press, the temperature drops, the pores close, and the gas reverts to a solid state. The image has now become integral with the substrate of the polymer. If the process is performed correctly, the transferred image cannot be removed, unless the actual fibers or coating is damaged.
Sublimation techniques have drawbacks limiting their application. For example, sublimation is more effective on polymeric substrates than on natural materials, such as those made from 100% cotton. Natural fibers and non-coated materials are not as porous as polymer surfaces. Further, the sublimation process has garnered limited results on non-white substrates. This is because the ink used in the sublimation process is actually transparent when sublimated and is more effectively highlighted by a white background.
Similarly, applying domed emblems to fabrics can be limited by a number of factors, and efficient application methods have yet to be developed. Utilizing a heat press to apply domed graphics, for example, is complicated by the fact that the heat required to secure a satisfactory bond to the fabric damages normal doming-grade adhesives. Additionally, it can be difficult to satisfactorily bond domed designs or images to certain fabrics unless a high enough temperature is used in the heat press.
Typically, such ineffectiveness in bonding techniques results in a garment containing a three-dimensional design or image incapable of withstanding industrial wash cycles. Thus, there is a need therefore for a three-dimensional design or image that can be applied to a garment and is capable of withstanding industrial wash cycles. There is a further need for a three-dimensional design or image which can be interchangeably and detachably applied to garments or other fabrics.